Mixing apparatus



Mgrh 26, 1946. F. A. MucKLl-:Y

MIXING APPARATUS 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Sept. 8, 1943 Inventor Attorney l March 26, 1946. F. A... MUCKLEY 2,397,324

' V MIXING APPARATUS l Filed sept. s, 1943 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Inventorv March 26, 1946. F. A. MucKLEY 2,397,324

A MIXING APPARATUS Filed Sept. 8, 1943- 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 A ltorney l'. March 26, 1946.

'sof4 `F. "A, MUCKLEY MIXING APPARATUS Filed sept.. s, 1943 my 53 v ss f j 1: r.- -6 2 i 22' 2/ 2O 57 46 $8 48+ l x;

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4 sheets-sheet 4 lnventdr mab Patented Mar. 26, 1946 UNITED STATES PATENT oFFlcE MIXING APPARATUS Fred Archer Muckley, Tylers Green, Penn,

England Application September 8, 1943, Serial No. 501,523

In Great Britain September 17, 1942 Claims.

The present invention consists of a concrete mixer or the like, i. e., a mixer for wet or dry concrete, mortar, plaster, compo, and other materials, which is in itself constructed and arranged and powered to propel itself over the ground or site, so that delivery of the material at the'desired place is performed without the intervention of Dobbin trucks, mechanical dumpers or labourers wheeling barrows to and from a station at` which the materials for mixing concrete, mortar, plaster, tarmac or the like are concentrated.v The mixer is charged at the station of materials by hand, or by a loading device, which may be embodied in or attached to the machine.

My invention is sharply distinguished from caseswhere horizontal drum mixers are mounted on motor lorries of conventional design for the bulk transport of th'e material and which are in some cases arranged to tip up at one end about a bottom hinge or pivot at the other end. On the contrary my invention relates to the tilting drum type of mixer which is towed `from place to place and wherein the so called drum turns about a vertical axis or an axis which is steeply inclined to the horizontal, for wh'ich reason I define my drum as a bowl; generally the bowl is rotatably supported in a cradle which is trunnionmounted for tilting the bowl, about an axis which intersects the axis of rotation, the tilting being l eii'ected by a hand wheel.

The purpose of my invention is to make such a tilting bowl form of mixer self propelled, or in other words, I adapt the motor of the portable mixer to mix the concrete and to drive the track wheels or caterpillars thereby moving the machine over the ground or site with one or the same motor from the station of materials to the place where the mixer is required for use such as footings, oors, roads, etc., preferably mixing materials whilst they are being transported, it being a feature of my invention that the self propelled mixer is constructed so that the bowl is kept in the forward view of the driver.

According to the present invention therefore I provide aself-propelled concrete or like mixer withI a tiltable mixing bowl which is rotatable for mixing by a power unit which also serves to propel the mixer, and is tiltable by'the driver from a driving seat or station situated behind the body. VThe mixing bowl will generally be constructed and arranged for tilting to discharge directlyla'terallyloutside of the track of t he`machine, thus enabling the machine to be made with a narrow wheel track, and preferably the' drum Will be'tilttable to either side of the machine.

I prefer to construct the mixer s0 that the bowl is tiltable by a hand wheel located in front of the driver in his normal driving position through reduction `gearing to the trunnionsof the mixing bowl mount or cradle. The driver can therefore mechanically and .visually control the tilting operation as readily as he controls steering.A

The steering wheel and the'wheel for operating the tilting gear may-be arranged on the same axis but so that the driver can operate the tilting wheel independently of the steering wheel and thus Vvhe may tilt the bowl and discharge the mixed material as soon as he reaches the station where the discharge is to take place. In some cases he lmay tilt thebowl and discharge the mixed material while the mixer is moving along.

and tov keep themixing bowl in the forward range of view of the driver. Aclutchunder the control of the driver may be provided for disengaging the mixer from 'th'e power unit when required.

The preferred forms of machine comprise front steering wheels'y and rear driving wheels, but this arrangement may be reversed. Instead of using road wheels I may use caterpillar tracks or a cornbination of Vroad wheels and caterpillar bands round the' road wheels for cross country or rough or uneven work or I may employ the road wheels with skid chains attached for negotiating rough or uneven'sites. I may arrange to use road wheels for steering "and acaterpillar track for driving gorcaterpillar track for driving and steeringin,` the` vconventional manner.V Drive and steeringv of theroad wheels and/or caterpillar tracks may beprovided for in suitable'mannerL Forms of machine according to this invention are illustrated by way of example in the accompanying drawings, in. which Fig. 1 is a side elevation, Fig. 2a plan View and-Fig, 3 an end view of a preferred form-of machine, Fig. 4 being an lenlarged Adetail sectional view vof the steering According to an alternative form 0f the inchassis frame being carried in a low position on the road wheels, thev front pair 2 steering and the rear pair 3 driving. 'The chassis carries a water or air cooled engine 4 to run on petrol or parafhn, or start on petrol and run on parain. .l

I may alternatively use a heavy oil engine, such as a Diesel engine, or an electric motor.

bowlr 5 and at the same time propel the machine. The machine is provided with a rear driving seat 6 suitably positioned to give easy control of the machine and a clear View ahead.

The engine 4 is located in the front of the machine over or nearly over the front axle as in automobile construction, and the mixing bowl 5 is located between upstanding pillars 1 from the chassis frame `between the engine and the drivers seat. Alternatively the engine or motor may be arranged at the rear orunder the mixer drum instead of at the front, according to the model required. Furthermore the mixer instead of being of the side tilting form described and shown could be arranged for front tilting, the drivers position and the engine being suitably placed therefor.Y

The bowl is rotatable with or about spindle 8 in a cradle 9 which is rockable for tilting the bowl as hereinafter explained. The bowl has a large bevel wheel I gearing with a bevel pinion II on a shaft I2 which is coaxial with the tilting axis and Yis driven by chain drive I3 comprising a sprocket wheel I4 loosely mounted on the enginedriven propeller shaft I and constructed as one element of a clutch for clutching with a companion clutch element I6 which is connected bya feather keyIa to the shaft I5. The clutch element I6 i's displaceable by operating hand lever 49 whence motion is transmitted through link 4I to a lever 42 fulcrumed to bracket 43 on the chassis and pivoted to clutch element I6.

The 'shaft I5 Vpropels the driving wheels 3 through a clutch, forward and reversing gears and-differential gearing, all of which may be of the conventional character employed in moto-r vehicles and indicatedggenerally by numeral I1. These may be a simple single speed drive and reverse or a multiple-speed and reverse.

-In the form illustrated the chassis encloses the transmission including the power unit, propeller shaft, gear box and rear axle, but an open frame type4 may be employed.

The chain drive turning the mixer bowl is situated on the propeller shaft in a suitable position (as shown) to'keep the bowl revolving in one di- The en. v gine will be of sucient power to drive a mixing worm 23 meshing with sector 24, this sector being on shaft 25 to which is secured drop arm 26 which operates drag link 2l, the other end of which is pivoted to the upper steering arm 28 of thesteering head 29 of one ofthe front wheels, the track link 30 connecting the lower steering arm 28a with a corresponding arm 28a on the Vstub axle of the other front wheelLall Yin manner well known in`connection with the steering of automobiles.

On the same axis as the steering wheel and also within convenient control of the driver, a wheel 3| is mounted controlling tilting of the mixer bowl with trunnions 32 which are supported in bearings in the pillars '1.

Motionis transmitted from the wheel 3I to j the trunnions through reduction gearing. The

rection whether the machine is moving Vforward f or reversing. The clutch I4-I IiA enables the bowl tobe entirely disengaged while driving the machine fromsite to site, or on the road from one jtown to another. The clutch may be arranged wheel 3| is on a hollow shaft 32a around the steering shaft I9, a small spur pinion 33 being secured to the shaft 32a `and meshing with a large spur wheel 34, on a counter yshaft 35 to which is secured a small spur pinion 36 meshing with a large vspur wheel'31 on the rear trunnion.

Provision is made for locking the mixing bowl and gear in normal Yupright position 'or in' a desired tilted loading or discharging position, e. g., a lever 38, pivoted to the rear pillar'l, may vengage locking projections 39 on the trunnion, .the lever 38 being also under the control of the 'driveroperator, either directly or through altransmission operated from a position, e. g., byY a lever, closer to the drivers seat. I A y l Y `It will be seen thatl thedriver-operator from his rear seat can drive the machine like'an ordis nary automobile and while the engine is ,running, and if desired while the machine is travelling, the mixing drum is rotating by chain drive I3 and bevel gearing I9,.II` this drive beingderived from the engine. When the machine reaches discharging positionthe driver-operator can tilt the drum to one side or. the other of the machine at will bil-operating the wheel 3l. In the form of the invention described, the wheel track is narrower than the chord` or diameter of movement of the mouth of thev drum sothat the drum canV discharge outside ofthe wheel track without the aid of additional devices such as chutes. The driver can moreover inthe-form of machine described either discharge the mixed concrete at a selected sitev or spread it along the surface before bringing theV machine to a standstill. He also has the control over theH locking lever 38 so that he can setv the drumin thevupright position or any desired `tilted positionfor loading or discharge, Y Y

AA tow bar may befittedrtoV a hitch at the front of the machine for pulling the machine from site to site where the machine is not 1icensed to drive upon 'the highwayf A towing hitch may be fitted at the rearv oflthema'chine for pulling a trailer with plant tothe site.

In the form'hereinbefore described the wheel Y with a large bevel wheel 48 on a countershaft 49 to which is secured a small spur pinion 50 meshing with large spur wheel on the trunnion 32. In the drawings the sleeve is shown at the right with the tilting gear engaged. When this gear is to be disengaged and the steering gear engaged the sleeve is advanced to the left by turning a hand lever 52 which is on a spindle 53 from which projects a radial arm 54 engaging a projection 55 from a forked member 56 which iits in a groove 51 in the sleeve 46. Suificient displacement of the sleeve brings the bevel wheel 20 into gear with the bevel wheel 2| on the steering spindle 22. Provision may be made for locking the sleeve in either position. If the lever advances the sleeve to a mid position the gears are both disengaged or in neutral.

In either form the trunnions may advantageously be supported in roller or ball bearings, e. g., as shown by 58, Fig. 6.

A foot or hand operating brake may be tted or a foot brake which may be locked in position by a hand lever. enable the machine to conform with the road traiiic act, where the machine is to be licensed to run under its own power on the highway. Mudguards and lights may also be added with this object in view.

Where the mixer is required to run over soft or uneven ground between the station at which the constituent materials are placed and the delivery places, endless or caterpillar tracks may be' employed with appropriate modification of the propulsion drive when necessary- What I claim is:

1. A self-propelling concrete mixer or the like comprising a chassis including a power propulsion unit for propelling the mixer, supports upstanding from said-chassis and a cradle rockably hung from said supports, a mixing bowl rotatablyv supported in said cradle, operative means between said power propulsion unit and said mixer bowl for rotating the bowl through the power of said unit, said means including an external ring gear on said bowl and a driving pinion cooperating therewith, said cradle having trunnions by which the cradle is rockably hung in said upstanding supports to enable the cradle to be tilted with said bowl about an axis co-incident with that of said driving pinion, a drivers station with driving controls behind said howl in the direction of the forward motion of the mixer so as to allow the driver a view ahead for driving while the bowl is in his general forward view, reduction gearing to the cradle trunnions and gearing to a downwardly extending spindle which is operatively connected to the lower steering mechanism, said reduction gearing and said gearing to the steering mechanism including co-axial driving gear elements, one to one of said gearings and one to the other of said gear- Number plates may be tted toings and manually operated means for operating said co-axial driving gear elements from said station so that therethrough the driver can steer the mixer or tilt they cradle for discharge of the bowl solely by manual effort while the bowl remains in his general forward view.

2. A self-propelling concrete or like mixer according to claim 1, in which said upstanding supports from the chassis are in spaced relation in the direction fore and aft thereof, said cradle trunnions extending in the same direction, and in which said gearing to the downwardly extending spindle and said reduction gearing to the cradle trunnions including said co-axial gear elements are in a combined steering and tilting gear box arranged between the drivers station and the bowl, said bowl discharging laterally of the mixer.

3. A self-propelling concrete or like mixer according to claim l, in which said co-axial driving gear elements are arranged one on one shaft and one on another shaft, said shafts being arranged co-axially one within the other, a hand-actuated steering control member on one shaft and a hand-actuated cradle tilting control member on the other shaft, said gearing elements being simultaneously in gear with the said steering gearing and cradle-tilting gearing and said control members being independently operatable.

4. A self-propelling concrete or like mixer according to claim 1, comprising a shaft along which said co-axial driving gear elements are displaceable and means so to displace them to put one of said elements into gear and one out of gear with said steering and cradle-tilting gearings respectively and a common steering and tilting .control member on said shaft.

5. A self-propelling concrete mixer or the like comprising a chassis including a power propulsion unit for propelling the mixer, supports upstanding from said chassis and a cradle having trunnions mounted in said supports, a mixing bowl rotatably supported in said cradle, operative connecting means including bevel gearing between said power propulsion unit and said mixer bowl for rotating the bowl through the power of said unit, a drivers station with driving controls arranged behind said bowl in the direction of forward motion of the mixer so as to allow the driver a view ahead for driving while the bowl is in his general forward view, a reduction drive to the cradle trunnions and a transmission to the steering mechanism, and means operatable by the driver from his said station by rotation about a single control axis for transmitting power solely by manual effort optionally through said transmission for steering or through said drive for tilting said cradle and thereby said bowl to discharge the contents of the bowl While it is in his general forward view and while the said bevel gearing remains in gear.

FRED ARCHER MUCKLEY. 

